Elections

Join the Brazil Institute and the Brazil-U.S. Business Council for a discussion about the results of the Brazilian elections following the first round of voting on Sunday, October 7.

This event will bring together stakeholders in Washington, opinion-makers from universities and think tanks, and the business community from both Brazil and the United States to analyze Brazil’s economic and political outlook and priorities for the bilateral agenda.

Will Brazil Go Right or Left?

The Shattering of the Political Center and the Implications for

The Brazil Institute, Brazil-U.S. Business Council, and the Atlantic Council hosted a telephone discussion about the results of the first round of voting in the Brazilian elections on October 7.

This event brought together stakeholders in Washington, opinion-makers from universities and think tanks, and the business community from both Brazil and the United States to analyze Brazil’s economic and political outlook and priorities for the bilateral agenda.

Summary

Women could play a decisive role in determining who wins the presidential race in Brazil this fall. As many as one-third of female voters are currently undecided and half reject the current front-runner, Congressman Jair Bolsonaro. Most leading male candidates, in an effort to gain women votes, have chosen as running mates strong, influential female politicians. At the same time, despite the potential power of the female electorate, women have struggled to gain a foothold in Brazilian politics.

More than 140 million Brazilian voters will go to the polls on October 7 to choose a new president, 27 governors, and hundreds of representatives at the federal and state levels. It is likely to be the most consequential election that Brazil has seen since the reinstatement of democracy in the 1980s. It is also proving to be one of the hardest to predict, as the electorate remains skeptical of the political class four years into an unprecedented corruption investigation that has now seen the imprisonment of leading political figures and businessmen.

As the Argentine economy struggles, next year’s presidential election has become increasingly unpredictable, leaving international investors uncertain about the future of President Mauricio Macri’s economic reform program.

The Wilson Center, chartered by Congress as the living memorial to President Woodrow Wilson, is the nation’s key non-partisan policy forum. In tackling global issues through independent research and open dialogue, the Center informs actionable ideas for Congress, the administration, and the broader policy community.